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Gokarna Forest Resort

In the Kathmandu Valley, but distinct from the maw of the city. Gokarna was once the royal family’s hunting preserve, but since kings and queens are a thing of the past in republican Nepal, five-irons have replaced firearms at this, the country’s top golf resort.

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Rooms from

£111per night

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Occupancy

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Adults

Children

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Location

7/10

Gokarna lies to the east of the Nepalese capital, about 30 minutes’ drive from the international airport. The resort is surrounded by more than 400 acres of protected woodland, home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, and an abundance of peace and quiet.

Style & character

7/10

Gokana embarked on public life as a Le Méridien boutique resort in 1999, switching to its current incarnation in 2008. But whoever’s been sitting in the general manager’s chair has had no effect on the essential character of the resort, which has always gloried in its natural surroundings. The fairways attract a predictable clientele, but it’s perfectly feasible to stay here to simply enjoy the natural side of things.

Service & facilities

7/10

Gleneagles’ design team put together the 6,755-yard, par-72, 18-hole course (green fees from US$29/£22) and it’s well run and maintained. The resort is spread out, with a mix of ex-royal mansions and more recent construction. A spa and swimming pool provide some indoor entertainment, while a stroll (or a horse ride) around the grounds rarely fails to include encounters with monkeys and spotted deer.

Rooms

7/10

The resort has just 100 rooms. First choice should be the Cottage rooms, which enjoy the most immediate forest views. There’s just a handful of suites, but all the accommodation tends toward lofty beamed ceilings, large windows and highly polished floors so there’s a palatial sense of space and the small-ish television screen doesn’t intrude in the least.

The bathrooms feature a tub (a tiled rectangular pool, rather than something made from enamelled cast iron) as well as a shower, and plenty of slatherable organic soap and herbal shampoo.

Food & drink

7/10

There are three restaurants – Hunter's Lodge (Nepali), Clubhouse (Thai and Chinese), which is primarily aimed at the golfing fraternity, and Durbar, which is the resort’s all-day diner. Breakfast at the latter is more than filling, with an especially good pastry section, as well as a lot of fresh fruit.

Both these restaurants are perfectly respectable – besides, there’s nowhere else to eat in the immediate vicinity. But Gokarna’s best eatery/drinkery is the 8848 Mt Bar & Patio, named for the world’s highest peak. Live music, snooker, cane chairs in the courtyard with views of the gardens, comfort food like spinach and walnut pie, and a raft of rum-based cocktails all add up to more than a little temptation to kick back and reflect if the royals ever had quite so much fun here.

Value for money

7/10

Double rooms from US$180 (£136), while suites start at US$500 (£379). Breakfast is included, and guests are given free Wi-Fi access for up to four devices.

Access for guests with disabilities?

Yes, the resort is wheelchair accessible, and there are also golf carts for excursions around the grounds.